Spoilers for all episodes of Perfect Match season 3 ahead. As soon as Netflix confirmed that season 3 of their reality series Perfect Match would feature stars from outside the Netflix Reality Universe, fans were cautiously optimistic that familiar faces from shows like The Bachelor and Love Island USA would bring a fresh round of drama to the hit dating show. There were even two names who entered the villa with a lot of history: former Bachelor Clayton Echard and former Bachelorette Rachel Recchia.
Of the pair, Recchia remained in the villa for most of the season and kissed a lot of frogs before she found a potential prince in Ray Gantt, a former finalist from Love Island USA. So, did the pair continue their romance outside of the show's filming? Read on for everything we know about Rachel and Ray’s journey on Perfect Match season 3 and where they are now.
What happened between Rachel and Ray on 'Perfect Match' season 3?
Rachel arrived in the villa early in the season's run, after being put on a date with Freddie (Love Is Blind: UK). However, any potential she and Freddie had was completely overshadowed when she reunited with Clayton (The Bachelor). For anyone unfamiliar with their history, Rachel made it to the top three contestants in Clayton's season alongside Gabby Windey and Susie Evans. Clayton slept with both Gabby and Rachel and told them he loved them, before dumping them to run after Susie after she self-eliminated. Rachel and Gabby went on to become the first-ever joint Bachelorettes, but Rachel ultimately left her Bachelorette run single.
Despite their previous relationship being the reason he's considered one of the worst Bachelors ever, Clayton convinced Rachel that their meeting in the villa must be fate, and that they should give things another chance. Fast forward 24 hours later—after Clayton went on a date with Sandy (The Ultimatum), and they're both rated the best kissers—and Clayton told Rachel that he had just gotten swept up in the excitement of seeing her again, and that he didn't want to pursue things with her.
Thankfully, Clayton at least gave Rachel a chance to stay in the house, as he and Sandy set her on a date with Scott (Love Island: UK). The pair hit it off enough to match and stay together for a few episodes, but Rachel questioned whether he sincerely liked her or if he was waiting for new women to come along.
Meanwhile, Ray entered the show in episode 6, when Madison was set up on a double date with him and Jalen (Too Hot to Handle). He doesn't have much luck with the women, though his banter with Lucy instigates an unnecessary fight between Lucy and Daniel. Of course, Ray immediately came back again for the gender-separated mixers, where the coupled cast members could spend time with the singles. Rachel took the chance to speak with the guys without Scott around, and she and Ray instantly hit it off as lover-girl met lover-boy. Even though Rachel was also attracted to Carrington (Love Island USA), she decided to match with Ray, who seemed to be looking for the same future as her.
As soon as they matched, Rachel and Ray showed off their chemistry and teamwork by winning the season's final compatibility challenge. The pair had a very cute lucha libre wrestling date, and the only hint of discord was when Carrington made one more pass at Rachel. She shut him down quickly, and Rachel and Ray ended the night by matching and making up a couple handshake.
At season 3's finale ceremony, when the entire cast returned to vote for the winning couple, Rachel and Ray gushed about how similar-minded they are and how happy they were to find each other. Clayton and Justine (Ray's Love Island USA bestie) even chimed in to say how much they made sense. However, this season added one last compatibility challenge, a newlywed game that narrowed the final five couples down to two. Rachel and Ray were unfortunately knocked out of the running because they could not remember exactly where their first kiss took place.
Are Rachel and Ray still together after 'Perfect Match' season 3?
Unfortunately for fans who were rooting for the pair, Rachel and Ray ultimately weren't meant to be. While Ray made it out to L.A., Rachel revealed to Elite Daily that their connection was more platonic, even while they were on the dating show.
"I have seen him in L.A. quite a bit. We are friends," she told the outlet. "We were super late in the process when we formed a relationship, so it didn’t have much time to progress past friendship. I don't know if we ever really were in a real relationship."
Though things didn't work out with Ray, Rachel did confirm to Parade that she is seeing someone from the show. "I’m talking to someone actually, but we’ll see where it goes," she told the outlet. "The person I’m talking to is actually from the show. But who knows? Who knows?"
Even before season 3 ended, Rachel had hinted that several cast members had been dealing with dating drama recently, especially after they all reunited for Netflix's Summer Break press junket and party last month.
"There's a lot still going on, like, even just from that Netflix [Summer Break] event," she said on "The Viall Files" podcast on August 5. "There’s a lot happening. Oh, my god, there might have been more drama at that Netflix event [than on the show]. There’s still stuff going on, [even though] filming was a year ago. [There were] lots of people fighting [and] couples getting back together."
When asked whether she recently rekindled something, Rachel answered, "Who knows? I might be talking to someone. You guys know I love a second chance and a third and a fourth! I am just so full of forgiveness."
